Topic: smart-city

Artificial Intelligence or AI is without a doubt part of future cities – in fact, many of today’s cities already rely heavily on artificial intelligence to predict the weather, traffic, air pollution, demographic developments, and many other factors. Chat GPT is the most famous AI around. What can it do for cities? Which cities are already using it? And what role will AI play in the future city?

In this article I would like to explore the ongoing debate surrounding the term "smart city" and its relevance in addressing the challenges faced by cities today. With the world undergoing significant changes, including climate change, cyberattacks, growing urban density, and the COVID-19 pandemic, the term "smart city" coined by IBM and Cisco in the early 21st century may not fully address these emerging issues.

Lessons learned from the pandemic have made health a key area of the smart city. The evolution of technologies that improve residents’ health and wellbeing is accelerating – but how exactly are cities leveraging data to improve health?  

When Smart and Sustainable come together

 The smart cities agenda focuses on improving citizens quality of life by enhancing a city's infrastructure using new technologies. Furthermore, we can think of sustainability as a long-term goal in which environmental, societal, and economic fields are balanced in the journey for life improvement. Therefore, smart sustainable cities are the way forward to not only improve the quality of life of a city’s inhabitants but also to confront a persistent problem of this era: climate change.

Do cities always have to have cars, streets, and carbon emissions? Do they even need to have a roughly circular layout? Saudi Arabia’s future city “The Line” suggests a different approach.

To celebrate International Women’s Day on March 8^th, we are taking a closer look at what smart cities mean for women. Because one thing is clear: Cities are still not designed for women. Most planners and architects are male with a target group of men in mind. What does that mean for women? What could a more gender-inclusive city look like? And how can we get there?

Over the past years, the smart city concept has reached a state of mainstream acknowledgment throughout the world. However, several important aspects are subject to constant debate:

• What is the best or a suitable smart city definition?
• Does the smart city concept apply to cities only, or does it include rural or smaller communities?
• Is the smart city concept technology- or human-centric?
• What are the key success factors of leading smart cities?
• What are the strategic governance approaches?
• What can be derived from best practices in smart cities development?

In our review on becoming a smart city, we will cover all of these topics that relate to the smart city evolution and defining the term smart city from a practical perspective.

We were lucky enough to listen to an exciting talk by Carlos Moreno at an event in Poznan in October 2022. After the event, we managed to have a quick chat with Carlos and discuss the 15-minute city concept and the future of smart and sustainable cities.

The Smart City Expo World Congress (#SCEWC22) in Barcelona is breaking all records, even before it begins! In its 11th edition, more than 24,000 visitors are expected to attend between November 15 and 17, 2022. More than 1,000 exhibitors will invite visitors to their booths and more than 400 experts will share their knowledge in an exciting lecture program. Under the motto "Cities inspired by people," the trade fair and the congress will be spread over two halls at the Fira Barcelona.

As part of the BBSR-funded project #connectedinEurope, six smart city peer-learning partnerships between German and European cities are being set up to promote knowledge transfer in smart city development and digital urban development to foster peer-to-peer learning. European and German cities can express their interest until 25 February 2022.